Black Gold
What Happens When Dot Krause and a Group
of Collaborators Are Let Loose in a Print Shop?

  

The Process

Creating "Black Gold" as the von Hess Visiting Artist
at the University of the Arts Borowsky Center, Philadelphia

In November 2007 Krause was invited to be the von Hess Visiting Artist at the University of the Arts Borowsky Center, Philadelphia. Using the Heidelberg Offset Lithography press in the center, she produced an edition of 100 prints during her visit.

Since the printer could use metallic inks, she decided to make the offset print with silver, gold and black inks and to inset into it a chine colle inkjet print on sheer paper.

Krause began the metallic offset portion of the print by scanning a metal and plaster surface and reshaping it in Photoshop to match the press dimensions. She chose a file to inset from a series of work in process called Climate Change.

The final piece, "Black Gold", makes reference to our dependence on petroleum and the damage to the environment caused by the burning of fossil fuels.

 

"Black Gold," mixed-media print by Dot Krause.

Before leaving her studio, Krause printed the landscapes to be chine colle insets on her HP Z3100 inkjet printer on sheer tissue. She divided the Photoshop file into three "separations" which would become the silver, gold and black offset plates. At the Borowsky Center, Lori Spencer, the Master Printer, prepared the film and made the offset plates.
The silver plate was printed twice to create a heavy metallic layer. The gold plate was also printed twice, over the silver, to provide additional reflectivity and depth of color. When the black plate was tested, the area which was to be overlayed with the landscape was too dark. Lori was able to remove the dark marks from the chine colle area.
After one strike of the black plate, a mylar template was made to mark the placement of the inset. With the help of several University of the Arts graduate students, Lori and my studio manager/ assistant, Mary Taylor, we adhered the landscapes with gel medium.

The following day we printed a second strike of the black plate to cover the edges of the silk tissue. We then handmade a fourth plate to add orange to the rivets. A final touch of bright orange oil pastel was applied on top of two of the rivets.

The image size is 24" x 17.5" on Arches hotpress 28" x 20". In an edition of 100, with 6 artist proofs, prints can be obtained from the judi rotenberg gallery for $1400 unframed.

The final-print celebration.
Many thanks to the Richard C. von Hess Foundation for funding this unique opportunity; Alida Fish, Harris Fogle and Jeannie Pearce, of the Media Arts Department, for extending the invitation; Lori Spencer, Master Printer Extraordinaire, for pulling it all together; Andrew Huot (and his wife Beth), Regan and Melissa, graduate students for lending much needed helping hands and Mary Taylor, my Studio Manager/ Assistant for providing invaluable ongoing support.

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